Plum is a nine-month-old deaf and partially blind mini Aussie who resides in Nashville, Tennessee, with her owner Aiden Mann and her big sister Lola, a five-year-old Staffy-Dane mix.
Mann and Plum have melted hearts all over the world after Mann posted a video of them on TikTok, which went viral with more than 52 million views and 12.7 million likes.
“People ask me how I wake up my deaf and blind pup without scaring her,” Mann wrote in the caption.
The video shows the 25-year-old vet assistant crouch down on the floor beside Plum, and begin to blow very gently in order to wake her up without startling her too much. Since she can’t hear and partially can’t see, it’s easy for her to become startled.
After Mann blows on Plum, she jumps up but is immediately calmed once she feels Mann’s warm embrace around her. Once she feels him, she wants endless love and cuddles.
Mann loved Plum the moment he met her and knew he wanted to give her a good life. It took him a lot of “trial and error” to learn how to communicate with a dog without using vocal commands, sounds or gestures. But he realized that the best way is to use touch signals.
He taught Plum basic commands using these touch signals. For example, she knows to sit when Mann touches under her chin.
She follows him and goes in a certain direction after Mann softly guides her nose in the direction they’re going, or he will run his hand along her body in the direction he wants her to go.
Not only has Plum grown close with Mann, but she has also become inseparable with her sister, Lola. The two of them love taking walks together, swimming in a local creek, and snuggling on the couch.
Click here to follow their adventures on Instagram.
